By IANS,
Washington : President Barack Obama has vowed to see that justice will be done in last week’s Fort Hood massacre that left 13 dead and 42 wounded and the alleged shooter will pay for his crime.
“It may be hard to comprehend the twisted logic that led to this tragedy,” Obama told an estimated 15,000 people at a memorial service at the Texas post. “But this much we do know: no faith justifies these murderous and craven acts; no just and loving God looks upon them with favour.”
“For what he has done, we know that the killer will be met with justice – in this world, and the next,” he said adding, “We are a nation of laws whose commitment to justice is so enduring that we would treat a gunman and give him due process, just as surely as we will see that he pays for his crimes.”
Though he told the families that “no words can fill the void that has been left,” he added, “your loved ones endure through the life of our nation.”
“Their life’s work is our security and the freedom that we too often take for granted. Every evening that the sun sets on a tranquil town; every dawn that a flag is unfurled; every moment that an American enjoys life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness – that is their legacy,” the president said.
After his remarks, Obama and first lady Michelle Obama laid a presidential coin before each of the 13 battlefield crosses – the helmet, boots and rifle representing each of those killed – before family members and comrades filed past.
Meanwhile, the suspected gunman Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, remained in intensive care at an US Army hospital in San Antonio, Texas. Hasan, an American-born Muslim of Palestinian descent, was scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan but had told his family that he wanted to get out of the military.
No charges have been filed, and authorities have not identified a motive in Thursday’s attack. But in a statement issued Monday night, the FBI said its investigation “indicates that the alleged gunman acted alone and was not part of a broader terrorist plot.”